Famous Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilks, known for his controversial drawings of the Prophet Muhammad, told RT that he fears for the freedom of publications to print what they want, following the deadly shooting in Paris that killed 12 people.

The Swedish cartoonist
shot to prominence in 2007 after he drew a cartoon with a head of
Prophet Mohammed with a body of a dog. His works were due to have
been displayed at a local gallery, but the exhibition was
canceled because of security concerns. The 68 year-old has faced
death threats, while he was punched during a lecture he gave in
2010. He believes that an exception shouldn’t
be made for Islam, when all other religions have accepted that
cartoons can poke fun at them.

Following the shootings
in the French capital, Vilks said that he had been offered extra
protection. "Yes, they have strengthened protection around
me. They have taken different measures," Vilks told Reuters,
without giving further details.

RT: What is your response to this event,
which has seen several cartoonists tragically killed?

Lars Vilks: For me this is very personal because
I have just heard that the editor has been shot and I met him
because he was a prize winner. There is a prize in my name that
is called the Golden Dog for Freedom of Expression and he
received that in Copenhagen a few months ago. So I met him and we
talked a lot during that time, so it’s really kind of a personal
loss.

The consequences of this will be that people become more fearful.
I have problems when I have lectures or exhibitions as most
things are canceled because of fright. This occasion here will
make things even worse and people will be very scared after what
has happened. This could also cause problems with censorship
because who would dare to publish anything after what has
happened?

RT: Do you think there will be more
censorship and will people be more wary of what they
publish?

LV: The problem is that we already have a very
high level of censorship when it comes to Islam and religion and
things like that. There have been a few magazines that have tried
to keep going as normal and Charlie Hebdo was one of the few
ones. This is good for terrorists because they know they can
attack one of these few targets. I think a consequence is now
there will be even less of these (magazines).

RT: There were threats beforehand so do you
think more could have been done in terms of security for Charlie
Hebdo?

I was speaking to Biard (Charlie Hebdo’s editor in chief) and he
was telling me we have a few policemen nowadays moving around the
area and everything was very calm. But this is the point, you
never know how many people you need. When something happens, it
will always be a surprise. This is the problem. You really need a
whole army to guarantee security. Years and years can go and
nothing happens and when it strikes, it strikes.

RT: You spoke to the editor recently. Did he
ever fear for his safety?

LV: No, no. This was not the case. He was very
humorous and was feeling very secure.